ONLY three cattle trains have travelled from Quilpie in just under three years, despite the state government paying Aurizon to provide 325 livestock rail services annually throughout regional Queensland.
The situation is a major concern for regional mayors in the south-west, particularly as the current contract only allows cattle to be transported to just two meat processors - Teys Australia and JBS - leaving all other players out in the cold.
"The new government has asked Aurizon to renew their contract, and this is happening at the moment, and that's why it is so critical and important that we get that contract changed so we can allow other players involved," Quilpie Shire Mayor and cattle producer Stuart McKenzie said.
Cr McKenzie said under the current contract, the entire train had to be booked and Aurizon would not allow producers to share in the transport.
"We also had a number of people who have tried to book and were told the service was unavailable."
The Livestock Transport Services Contract, set up during the Bligh administration as part of the sell-off of Queensland Rail, is used by the Department of Transport to purchase a minimum of 325 rail cattle services a year.
This is meant to be used to transport cattle from regional hubs in the north-west, central-west and south-west regions to processing plants.
However, only three trains have travelled through Quilpie in just under three years, including one that rumbled through last week.
A spokesperson from Aurizon said the contract only allows cattle to be transported to the two designated abattoirs and the frequency of the services was dependent on demand from these abattoirs.
"We are working closely with the livestock industry to meet their requirements, including this new opportunity with Oakey Beef Exports," the spokesperson said.
Cr McKenzie said the current situation was seeing cattle being "leaked" from Queensland to other states.
The council carried out a cattle freight study in the south-west region and determined there were about 120,000 head of cattle that came out of the Quilpie depot.
Virtually none of these were on rail, and 60 per cent of cattle were going to feedlots or saleyards.
"Once you put cattle on a truck from around Birdsville, they can go to the live export trade in Darwin or South Australia rather than Ipswich.
"From a Queensland point of view, it makes sense to use the rail - it's cheaper than road and it automatically directs cattle back into Queensland."
Meanwhile, the council was working with the Oakey Abattoir to get access to cattle via the rail network, as it would provide more opportunity for cattle producers.
Cr McKenzie said it would not take a lot of money to do up the sidings, it would regenerate Quilpie, and the state government was already paying money to keep the rail lines maintained.
Last week, the South-West Region of Councils held several meetings with key cabinet ministers, including the Premier and the Minister for State Development Dr Anthony Lynham.
Cr McKenzie said he was pleased with the willingness of the government to look at the current contracts, and said he was confident they were taking the expansion project of Oakey Abattoir seriously.
"Our next meeting will hopefully bring key stakeholders, including Oakey Beef, Aurizon and the Agriculture Minister, to the same table, and from the feedback I am getting, I believe that could be happening in the next couple of weeks."
He was optimistic when he heard Aurizon was considering Oakey Abattoir in its negotiations, and said this was a win-win for the agricultural sector and rural communities.
It was a whole-of-area economic development project, but it would require the support of government, he added.
For general manager of Oakey Beef Exports Pat Gleeson, it has been frustrating to see a railway line about 400 metres from the abattoir door, but Queensland government contracts do not allow him to use it.
"We are ready to push the go button and with the resources sector temporarily contracting, we see our planned expansions as a win for the agriculture sector and for western communities."
Mr Gleeson said the expansion would create 700 immediate jobs on his site alone, not to mention the opportunities around rail freight and the growth of the Cooper/Eramonga Basin in coming years.
"We want to help the state grow jobs in Queensland and we are already established," he said.
Oakey Beef Exports livestock manager Kurt Wockner said currently they were at killing capacity at 1200 a day, and most were sourced anywhere from Julia Creek south to the border. The abattoir is looking to increase this to 1600 a day on rotating shifts, seven days a week.
"We know the current numbers are depleted in the channel and west country due to ongoing drought, but this is the ideal time to push for a rail service because the seasons will change at some point - they always do," Mr Wockner said.
"It just makes sense to utilise the rail line as the south-west is a major part of our drawing area and the line is sitting there as an unutilised asset."